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BSU prepares for Indoor Championships
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The Boise State track and field teams are preparing for the upcoming Western Athletic Conference Championships to be held at the Jackson Indoor Track Facilities in Nampa this Friday through Saturday.
The Broncos head into the competition with high hopes to continue a commanding run on the men’s side; they have won four conference titles in the past three years.
Meanwhile, the women are hoping to finally achieve the status of WAC champion.
The men enter this weekend ranked No. 12, and they sit atop the impending competition with high hopes.
“[The men] are certainly hungry to win it again,” Head Coach Mike Maynard said.
Maynard said he feels that it will likely come down to three teams in the end: BSU, Utah State and the University of Idaho, though the two strongest performances will come from the Broncos and the Aggies.
“That doesn’t mean that we let our guard down, you know, it’s a tight competition,” Maynard said.
The top three teams are separated by less than ten points, meaning that it is virtually a dead heat in the men’s competition.
But BSU is not thin in talent, boasting numerous athletes who are well into the national rankings in different events.
The triple jump is lead by Ryan Grinnell (No. 2) and Zacharias Arnos (No. 15). Grinnell is also No. 10 in the high jump. Savvas Diakonikolas is No. 6 in the long jump entering this weekend.
The competition tightens up in the weight throw with four WAC athletes ranked in the top 16 spots in the nation.
The Broncos top the list with No. 6 Simon Wardaugh, followed by Idaho’s Matthew Wauters (No. 10), Russ Winger (No. 13) and No. 16 Jarrod Stevens. Winger also claims the No. 2 in the shot put.
It is clear that a team effort will be necessary despite the strong presence of the pinnacle performers.
“You don’t win a conference championship on your best athletes,” Coach Maynard said.
Last year the meet came down to the final events, the final leg of the 4×400, then the final 50 meters.
“I believe that this year’s team competition is at least that close,” Maynard said. “It’s a dead heat.”
Maynard made it very clear that conference championships require the necessary components of both breadth and depth of athletes to score team points. The fastest and strongest cannot win the competition alone.
“We can talk about all [of] those people . those are all points that we obviously need but it is very important to pick up the points from the second through sixth spots,” Maynard said. “That is how you win championships.”
The winning team will likely need to score 160-170 points to win this year, Maynard said.
These points will be picked up by the up-and-coming athletes who help support the team.
“The cool thing about a conference championship is that it pulls in a lot of names that you wouldn’t otherwise hear about . Marlon Douglas, Nick Cunningham,” Maynard said. “[They] are the only way that we can win a conference championship.”
Maynard also said he feels the Broncos’ strength lies in the throws and jumps, where they could pick up some big points.
“The men are certainly hungry to win it again,” Maynard said.
The WAC Championship will start Friday at 10 a.m. and run through Saturday evening.
KIRK BELL
Sports Writer
